Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1887-06-02

7stfi-
What language can express the cruel and har-
harous atrocty Of the controlling elements of the
south in their treatment ot Republicans, both
white and black and especially OF the freedmen
who had been invested by constitutional amend
meuts with liberty aud political rightS2 Taking
advantage of the detection of Andrew johnson
and his reconstruction policy, they commenced
with laws that denied the freedmen liberty of
speech and of the press, and even the personal
freedom and protection allowed by the laws of
the most despotic powers in Europe TO the mean
est scrf, followed by wholesale assassination of
marmed and uudiS ciplined negroes inflicted
by secret organized. and disguised bands,
using all the agencies of terror and superstition
that could affect the mind of ignorant and
crednus people with such that IN ten
years after the war the freedmen of the south
could not. a rule. vote wherever their vote
would change the result they could hold no Office
and might le cheated and robbed and murdered
with IMMUNITY. This intimidation was, in many
places, especially in the far south, extended to
white Republicans Of character and Intelligence,
among them some Confederate soldiers who re
sisted far rs they could these atrocities, and
werr branded with opprohrIoIIS epithets, tabooed
and ostracised. and, in cases, murdered.
Does any man deny this All this and more, in
hidrOus detail. was proven before committees in
congress. was reported by officers Of the army
and evidenced by every form of proof known to
courts and, in rlany cases, was admitted by the
press and people Of the south, and defended. Gen.
Raum, a distinguished citizen Of Hi
nois, has, in the book | have before me- com
piled and condensed this evidence and | say to
YOU that nn read it without being con
WINGED thai al say Is true with revolving details
that do not give In this way and by these
means, the Democratic party in the south
holds in solid and Imhroksu array every southern
state with increased political power conferred by
the freedom Of the slaves This Is the basis of their
power. Without The terror and ostraciSmI have
described several of these states governed by
their interests and convictions, Enlightened by
free discussions emancipated in fact well as in
name, would he thoroughly Republican as Hi
nois. It is said that this is raising the bloody
shirt; renewing the suimOSitieS of the war |
deny it. The charge is an unjust repruach of
Confederate soldiers What l speak of is not
the work Of soldiers. b'it Of towards and GRIMM
ais, not in war but in peace. l pity the man who
can not distinguish between the duty of soldiers
and self imposed crueltits and barbarous methods
born of slavery
And, fellow-citizans this is not thing of the
past IT is a continuing fact It is a fact to-day
There Is not intelligent man in this broad land
Of either party that does not know that Mr. Cleve-
ialld Is president ti the uitTI STATES nv
tue of critr,-~ against the elective franchise in
cluding murder arson. ballot box StufHg forr-
cry and perjury. hut for which James &; Blaine
would nov i- in his place. There has not been a
monent since the aflaption of the fifteenth
amendment when # there should have been fair
election fer president, majority Of the constitu-
tional voters at least five of the southern states
would moi have voted for the Republican nom
inee
He then spoke of the frauds in Cincinnati
and Chicago, for the latter of which Joe
Mackiu is now "lloing time" in the Illinois
penitentiary, and asked why Southern Demo
Gratis were put IN offices Of honor and profit
toy means OF lIkt' oHenses- He then sari this
condition of affairs was hopefully changing,
and regarding the Republican policy in the
matter continued:
ON. duty think the Republical party has not
yet performed, and thai is that in states where it
is asccrtained that free and orderly elections for
senators and representatives IN congress can not
i've had, congress should assert and exercise its
unqnestinned power to regulate the times, places
and manner Of holding such elections This DOW
or Is clearly conferred upon congress as the
power TO levy taxes or make war, and, in my
judgment the time time has arrived when it
should be fully and vigorously exercised.
The mission OF the Republican party will never
end until every legal vster can cast one honest
vote, and no more and have that vote counted
The financial question next was taken I'D,
and on this slil ject he said the revenues must
be reduced A continuous reduction had been
accomplished by the Republicans since the
war until the whole revenue was raised.
nearly, from articles produced in this coun-
try, so that while the reduction was going ON
the American workman had been protected
from the competition of articles manufactured
by the cheap labor OF foreign countries. This
however, had not caused Americans to nav
higher prices, because competition at home
had kept prices down to reasonable stan
dard. The farmer had also been protected.
and in this connection the senator spoke a
good word for the wool tariff, and advocated
reducing the duty on sugar, and rs a protec-
ton To our own ugargrowers the payment
TO them Of bounty out of the duties The
Democrats, he said, proposed to reduce duties
on articles which we produce, thus bringing
our labor into competition with foreign labor,
and Yet, with full power to take action on this
matter, they could not agree on a measure,
while the surplus went on increasing.
He then denounced the pocket" veto of the
river and harbor bill and said the Democrats
had only proposed in congress one financial
and that was TO reduce the surplus.
1t was said that the Republican party was
boarding vast sums of idle money to make times
hard; that they 1.-THE Deriocratsl would
scatter 1t among the people The Re
publican party had adopted the policy Of
receiving gold and silver coin into the treas
'Iry, and for the convenience of the people to is
certificates IL which cir ata
1t had also adopted the policy of maintaining in
the treasury from 100 to 40 millions OF cola 10 So
cure prompt redemption of United States notes,
ALI other money received in the treasury
was under Republican policy, applied to
the payment of the public debt This
policy was pursued with such success that the
bonded debt reduced from g. 756, 431 81 .43
to sl315 b.. l43 ~ and the interest Of the debt
from S151, 100 900 to S47 0tD,OO0 Our Democratic
friends, in the canvass of 1884. promised to pay
out all this Idle money. They said it was kept to
make money scarce. Ii should he divided among
The people. What was the resut2 Democratic
secretary KEPT piling up more idle money; to give
ll1n an excuse for doing he changed the form
If the debt statement. He excluded the whole
mass of fractional silver coin from the count. He
increased the balance on hand S50,OOO0Oo more
han the Republican party had done. For two
Fears Democratic house, with fifty majority,
With sole power on the subject, has been trying
% find way to reduce the suplns, but utterly
allied to agree
Upon the labor question Mr.. Sherman spoke
Is follows:
"The Republican party, embracing in it the
,reat body of the producers of the country,
las uniformly, both by state and national
egislation adopted every just measure that
ms hppn uroIansa1 In iulnrnvl their rendition